New Rochelle officials unveil $100 million proposal for transit center renovation
The New Rochelle Transit Center could be getting a major facelift in the future as city officials unveiled a $100 million proposal to redesign and reimagine the historic transportation hub.
The New Rochelle Transit Center could be getting a major facelift in the future as city officials unveiled a $100 million proposal to redesign and reimagine the historic transportation hub.
"New Rochelle is the busiest train station, outside of Grand Central, on the New Haven Line," said Mayor Yadira Ramos-Herbert. "So, seeing it's importance in the region, we want to revitalize it to make it more of a place that you can come and meet for coffee, or potentially music, and speakeasy in the evening."
The mayor said the redesign also focuses on adding green spaces, a multi-use plaza, solar panels to parking garage's roof and refreshing the bus terminal. They're upgrades that could cost around $100 million that the mayor hopes will be funded by grants.
"As we're growing in the downtown...We want to make sure that the community does more than sleep here," Ramos-Herbert said. "We want them to wake up, work, but also make friends, family and build core memories right in their downtown."
Plus, the mayor said New Rochelle would be the first city in Westchester with direct Metro-North rail access to Grand Central and Penn stations by 2027. It's news that excited riders like Joe Klein.
"I go to Washington a lot and it would give me direct access to the Acela fast train from Penn Station to [Washington,] D.C.," Klein said. "It would save me at least an hour."
The timeline for the proposed redesign of the transit center could take some years, according to the mayor. However, employees at local companies, Amanda Tarsia of Cafetero, said they are eager to see New Rochelle go through a renaissance.
"It would be wonderful, it would be amazing," Tarsia said.
For information on this proposal, please visit this website.
